my knitting, my burros, my special little part of the Sierra Nevadas....

August 25, 2011

Sheesh... it has been six weeks since I last posted! My excuse is that I am going in lots of directions, many of them outdoors and most fun. Work has been steady, but I am still only working half time for someone else, so I don't really feel like I can use that as an excuse. Getting enough computer time is really the biggest issue; my time spent elsewhere leads to far less screen time and these cute little posts just won't write themselves!

I do get up at dawn every morning, and have all summer, tending my Natural Dye Plant CSA... you can read more about that project here. Dear eldest son says he has stopped referring people to this blog since I only write over there, so I am going to try and correct that. The good news on the CSA front is that the first shipment was packaged and mailed last week, and lots of other harvesting and drying going on, including another trip to the high Sierras this weekend.

It is the only of my three entries to the Nevada County Fair that I managed to get finished in time to leave with Stephanie, who took it on project admission day, while DH and I took a mini-vacation. Guess you can tell what my priorities are! Actually, I was pretty delighted to win a third place ribbon for this. The handspun I produce is still really only intermediate in quality, and I didn't actually have 198 yards, more like about 150, so that I finished with a picot bind off instead of the edging called for. Amazing what blocking pins and wires can do to improve the appearance of that edge.

I have been working on the same Daisy skirt all summer, and do need to post an update photo; I also cast on for another Two-Summer Sundress for my dear little granddaughter, who will be turning 2 (?!) in mid-September. However, these just aren't exciting objects to share at this point, so I blatently stole this meme from Margene as blog filler, and to remind you I DO still care about knitting!

My Five Knitterly Things

1. My favorite things to knit – lace! I already have way too many shawls, so tend to be on the lookout for a nice, wraparound bit that wears easily. This Woolen Rabbit pattern fits the bill and may well be my next project, even though it isn't lacy! Oh well, they are my rules and made to be broken.

2. My least favorite thing about knitting – Lack of TIME to get to that huge list on my Ravelry queue. I have finally gotten interested in proper finishing techniques, which used to annoy me, so even that has become another joy of knitting for me.

3. My first finished object – I think it was a simple pair of slippers, made from garter stitch rectangles sewn with the toe side overlapping and the heel side sewn together upright. I was five at the time, so please forgive my less-than-perfect recollection. Barbie clothes knitting occupied a good portion of my childhood.

4. If I could take only one yarn brand to my desert island it would be – I'm going to cheat here... enough roving to spin as long as I was there... gives me three times the pleasure. First creating and dyeing the yarn, then knitting from it. I guess that's cheating, though, so I would have to say a beautiful, cushy fingering weight yarn.

5. My current knitting obsession is getting my Daisy skirt done so that I can start on my Knit Swirl coat for the coming winter. I have both weights of yarn dyed with madder root and ready to go, though I don't mind waiting a bit if it means I get to enjoy a few more weeks of summer.

November 30, 2008

I have been trying to faithfully support my dear friend Margene as she makes the epic journey through daily posting until the end of 2008, and how does she thank me? She has tagged me for a photo meme!

Lucky for me, I am at work, relying on what is on my memory stick, and therefore you are getting one of nicer ones and recent enough that I remember what's going on here... some regulary readers will too. I am the woman walking (and wearing my Vintage Capelet) a string of burros in a march on the California State Capitol last spring to urge the governator not to cut funding to the state historic parks.

Now, I will apologise to those tagged, as the buck usually stops here, but I do want to see what you come up with, so I am tagging Stephanie, Sharon, Amy, Carrie, and Anne.

December 07, 2007

OK, I stole this Christmas meme from Carrie, but her answers are much funnier, so you have to go and read them! Do it if you want... Christmas is my personal favorite holiday, and today is also St. Nicolaus Day, so of course I had to....
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Gift bags, of cloth, or recycled from gifts I have gotten, or maybe a cool dish towel or something else re-usable!
2. Real or artificial tree? Real, I mean getting a tree is part of yardwork around here!
3. When do you put up the tree? Usually the second week in December or so... we keep it up about a month total, until Twelfth Night though.
4. When do you take the tree down? see above
5. Do you like eggnog? Oops, THAT's what I forgot tonight at the store... it's practically a staple around here while in season.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? A set of 40 colored pencils that my dad got me when I was around 10... I treasured them and used them until at least my thirties.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, a small one with pewter figurines. I started needlepointing one back in the 1970s then later cross stitching one in the 1980s, but never finished either.
8. Hardest person to buy for? Probably my BIL, who has become kind of minimalist, and already has everything.
9. Easiest person to buy for? DH. He collects lots of things and I am always finding something I know he would love.
10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? This one's pretty tough... I must have blocked out the bad memories... maybe the time I got polyester gloves and scarf... you knitters will feel my pain.
11. Mail or email Christmas cards? Well, I try to mail some every year...
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? "A Christmas Story"
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Whenever I find something I know would be a treasure.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yep, I'm big on recycling:)
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Fudge. Oh. Yeah, I guess I can get that anytime.... well, how about cranberry sauce?
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?. Bubble lights!
17. Favorite Christmas song? Silent Night, because I can still usually remember how to play it on the piano, and We Wish You A Merry Christmas, because I can remember all the words.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?! Yes. come back next week... I'm busy trying to answer all these questions!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Neither...I like those pointy ball thingies...
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? On Christmas Eve while growing up....on the 'designated day' while raising a blender family, and usually on Christmas morning lately.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? I agree with Carrie on this one... its the shopping malls. Although it's kind of a year round thing.
23. Do you decorate your tree in any specific theme or color? Now, here's where Carrie and I strongly diverge... you see here at Slate Range Camp, there are more than ONE tree.. there's a little tree upstairs in my studio with tiny knitted sweaters and mittens, another small tree with woodland ornaments, and a huge tree in our parlor (this IS an older-than-Victorian house) with a collection of German-style glass ornaments in all kinds of fantastical shapes and forms. Of, and of course that's where the bubble lights live.
24. What do/did you leave for Santa? Cookies and milk!

June 13, 2007

I just love the way that phrase rings, even though I know it is NOT that easy, especially for industry and the auto trade... however, being green is undergoing a wave of attention, mainly thanks to Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth, catching so much attention in the past year. Therefore, it was no surprise to see Vogue's Knit1 put out a Green Issue this spring-into-summer (though they did something similar last year, to be fair to them). There is a lot of good information about the wide range of "other fibers" to knit with now available, including soy, corn, bamboo, and nettles, as well as information about why using organic cotton is different than the other cotton yarns available. There are fun ideas for using up scraps and stash, including the classic Budweiser Hat that you used to see offered for sale at flea markets across the West. There are even some useable patterns, including several different totes to help you replace store grocery sacks.

I had been reading their Green Issue the past few days and feeling all warm and fuzzy when I saw Carole's version of the Green meme going around posted yesterday, and decided to make my own list...

1. I do recycle, including glass, plastic, most cans and most paper.

2. I re-circulate many of the books and magazines I purchase, finding them other readers to keep them in circulation. Bookcrossing is one of my favorite ways to do this.

3. We grow some of our own food every year, as well as shop locally, reducing the distance our food travels and the fuel consumed to get it to us. We also eat organic as much as possible, at home and at the Headstart program where I work.

4. I do most of our grocery shopping through our local co-op, which also makes a point of using as many local sources as possible. All of our members are extremely proud to have helped support the construction of a green-certified (LEED), brand new store which opened just after Memorial Day. You can read about it here.

5. We converted to compact flourescents with the help of our utility years ago.

6. We installed an on-demand propane hot water heater about four years ago; it heats as you go, consuming far less fuel than a tank full of hot water growing cold and needing to be re-warmed whether you are there or not.

7. We have routed the grey water (coming from our sinks, showers, and washers, as opposed to 'black water' from toilets) to ornamentals rather than the waste system.

8. We mulch and use drip irrigating to conserve water in our hot, Mediterranean-type climate.

9. I introduced using cloth napkins at our early Headstart program when I started as Site Supervisor in March; this is a simple way to recycle cloth napkins purchased from thrift shops and estate sales while saving trees. We have been doing this in our family for over 25 years, mostly without buying them new.

10. We buy many things we need second-hand; it is pretty easy here in the US to live well from the cast-offs of others. Just so's ya know, I always buy new underwear and shoes.

11. We installed lots of insulation in our 1852 home and chose not to install air conditioning, though we do use fans and a swamp cooler once the temps get into the 90s... we have ceiling fans in almost every room downstairs and use them summer and winter to make the most of the conditions.

12. I choose not to live the lifestyle of a frequent flier; traveling by plane uses an immense amount of fuel resources and there really isn't any way to get around that. I look forward to a few horizon-expanding journeys each year and consider taking the train as an alternative first.

13. As far as knitting goes, I have boldly re-purposed failed projects, am a proud member of the UFO Resurrection (wouldn' that make a great name for a punk band or new church movement?!), and scour thrift stores for other peoples' yarn rejects.

14. Wool is a renewable resource and I use it lovingly. Spinning gives me the chance to link more directly to local wool suppliers and to reduce the amount of chemical processing involved in the yarns I choose. I continue to explore natural dyes.

15. I am working on a knitted hat from recycled cotton and have used recycled sari silk yarn as well. I am looking forward to trying bamboo and soy, as well as the development of other fibers.

All of this fails to make up entirely for the fact that my rural lifestyle means I cannot access public transportation. Nor do I make enough money annually to be an early adopter of a hybrid electric vehicle. I am hoping to be able to get one within the next five years, though.

Just in case you think I have given up entirely on producing a knitting blog, I do want to share the one object I have completed since May 1st that isn't square!

This bright pink scarf is a variation of the Montego Bay Scarf in this summer's Interweave Knits... mine is done in On Line's Linie 136. This was a quickie to make and cool enough to wear this summer on all but the hottest days (it is microfiber; probably not too green, but a Christmas gift I am putting to good purpose).

I am hoping to get another Manos square done and divide my Lutea shell at the armholes this weekend. The temps are hitting the triple digits today and tomorrow in California; hope you stay cool wherever you are!

May 24, 2007

This week has been Tie Dye Week at the Headstart Center, a long-standing end of the year tradition. It has been great fun to help the preschoolers make a shirt, to wrap, tie and dye a dozen cotton hankies for my toddler class to use as cloth napkins at meals, and even to attempt a modified shibori technique on a silk velvet scarf and dye some yarn... and not-so-great working with a few other staff members to wrap and dye enough drawstring bag/backpacks to give to each child, filled with summertime supplies such as sunscreen next week at our party (of course my part of the program is partying too, even though we are year-round!). The grand photo shoot and unveiling to you will have to wait until next week as most of our items are still steeping, wrapped in plastic wrap and awaiting their final hand rinsing, followed by machine washing with Synthrapol to set the dyes. It has been great fun, as most of the work has been in the afternoons, with beautiful though slightly warm spring weather. Our super-duper resource and purveyor of cheap but good cotton items (as well as the scarf) is Dharma Trading Company; they also carry some natural yarns and an endless array of textile supplies. I especially love these guys because they are only about 150 miles away and their shipping is so fast to us. However, their website is a terrific resource for anyone wanting to learn more about dye techniques.

Last week, I underwhelmed you with the Knitting Meme, so here is the spinning one to accompany it. The directions are the same. Bold those things you have done, italicize those you wish to do, and leave plain the ones that are of no interest to you.

May 17, 2007

If You Knit Long Enough... Some of the Ewe-tah grrls were passing this meme around, so I copied the list off of Margene's blog as a nice, easy, end-of-the-week post to entertain and enlighten you. Bold for stuff you've done, italics for stuff you plan to do one day, and normal for stuff you're not planning on doing

Afghan

I-cord

Garter stitch

Knitting with metal wire

Shawl

Stockinette stitch

Socks: top-down

Socks: toe-upKnitting with camel yarn

Mittens: Cuff-up

Mittens: Tip-down

Hat

Knitting with silk

Moebius band knitting

Participating in a KAL

Sweater

Drop stitch patterns

Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn

Slip stitch patterns

Knitting with bananafiber yarn

Domino knitting (=modular knitting)

Twisted stitch patterns

Knitting with bamboo yarn

Two end knitting

Charity knitting

Knitting with soy yarn

Cardigan

Toy/doll clothing

Knitting with circular needles

Baby items

Knitting with your own handspun yarn

Slippers

Graffitti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)

Continental knitting

Designing knitted garments

Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)

Lace patterns

Publishing a knitting book

Scarf

Teaching a child to knit

American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)

Knitting to make money

Button holes

Knitting with alpaca

Fair Isle knitting

Norwegian knitting

Dying with plant colours

Knitting items for a wedding

Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies...)

Knitting socks (or other small tubular items)on two circulars

Olympic knitting

Knitting with someone elses handspun yarn

Knitting with dpns

Holiday related knitting

Teaching a male how to knit

Bobbles

Knitting for a living

Knitting with cotton

Knitting smocking

Dying yarn

Steeks

Knitting art

Knitting two socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars simultaneously

December 19, 2006

“THE RULES:Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.”

I got this meme from Vicki, and then had fun reading Margene's answers. It's going around like the chicken pox used to do, so as busy as everyone is during the holidays, I will let you decide for yourself if you want to join in.

1. I can't leave the house without earrings in all six of the holes pierced in my two ears, or I feel naked.

2. I can't eat certain foods, like yogurt right out of the carton, or a whole banana without feeling like I am about to gag... something about the texture. It's ok if they are mixed with other foods (frozen bananas are great in smoothies).

3. I live where there is more space around things mainly because I can sometimes feel claustrophobic.... like when driving in rush hour traffic, or when at a packed event in a building. Hey, wait, maybe that's not so wierd after all, just a strong survival instinct.

4. I always need to check and see where the exit is... see number three.

5. Although I like wine well enough, I have never really developed a "palate" for it; the sulfites in most wines will trigger asthma that is usually under control for me.

6. I refuse to watch violent or horror movies... this one goes way back to hiding behind the couch when the Wizard of Oz was on TV when I was a little girl.

I have been busy making several small things, finished up the buying and mailing and now need to finish the wrapping and cooking. Relaxing will come next week, along with some new "me" projects. I will be attempting Hidcote Garden as my "Lace-uary" project, joining together with a few others in an as-yet informal KAL. I have three possibilities to choose from in my stash. First there's the pale turquoise Merino Oro that I originally bought for this shawl, then there's the Iris Alpaca Cloud that I bought before Christmas LAST year, planning to make a EZasPi shawl, but changed my mind, and last, but not least, the natural silk that Margene sent me as a birthday gift.... hmm, I will have to make a decision soon. I am also planning to start Seda using the Cormo wool I got at Estes Park. If I can keep from being distracted by new ideas and projects, and get those two done, I would love to start on my Wild Apple Bohus cardi, leftover from last year's Christmas gift that didn't arrive until March (something about being back-ordered by not telling us it would take so long).

I will have photos of the mohair gift shawl and my Bejeweled scarf tomorrow...

December 01, 2006

It's been almost two years since Time named bloggers the men (and women of the year). Shortly after that announcement, bloggers were first in getting out news about the immense devastation caused by a major tsunami in southeast Asia on Christmas Day 2004... but still, many people haven't a clue about bloggers or blogging. Just us, right?

Well, we have attracted scientific study! You may have already read about this project over on Carole's blog, but just in case you haven't, I will fill you in a bit. Acephalous has proposed to present a paper at the national MLA conference on how fast news (in the form of a meme) can travel through the blogosphere. You can read the more esoteric details about his experiment there, but in essence, he is asking that people spread this project around through their blogs and asks you to do the following:

Write a post linking to this one in which you explain the experiment. (All blogs count, be they TypePad, Blogger, MySpace, Facebook, &c.)

Ask your readers to do the same. Beg them. Relate sob stories about poor graduate students in desperate circumstances. Imply I'm one of them. (Do whatever you have to. If that fails, try whatever it takes.)

Heck, I have never had a need for pinging or technorati, but for Carole.... I will knit for Knit Unto Others (3 more days left to join us), and I will help out with this meme for the sake of science....

November 24, 2006

Do you have a food hangover from yesterday? Are you one of the shoppers or workers? I am trying to wrap up my work for the week early so that I can get back to my Knitting Unto Others projects, and may have some photos later this weekend, as well as one of my second version of Susan's Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl, now drying. In the meantime....

11. Your ex: depressive12. Your fear: overcommitment13. What you want to be in 10 years? retired14. Who you hung out with last night? Glenn15. What you're not? urbane16. Muffins: no17. One of Your Wish List Items: DSL18. Time: evening19. The last thing you did: eat 20. What you are wearing: slacks21. Your favorite weather: warm22. Your favorite book: historical23. The last thing you ate: chocolate24. Your life: blessed25. Your mood: tired26. Your best friend: Laura27. What are you thinking about right now? blogging28. Your car: Jeep29. What are you doing at the moment? typing30. Your summer: short31. Your relationship status: married32. What is on your TV? Southpark33. What is the weather like? cold34. When is the last time you laughed? now